Puff adder strikes in Woodhaven

WOODHAVEN resident, Vijay Pillay (52), was lucky to escape with just a swollen ankle after an encounter with a puff adder on Friday, 23 May.

While walking into his driveway at about 11.45am, he felt a sharp ‘excruciating’pain on his ankle. Reaching for his ankle to try and ease the pain, he noticed the snake recoil.

“I saw the snake and it still looked fierce. I stepped backwards away from it and that’s when my dogs came rushing out and started confronting it. I feared the snake would also bite them, so I reached for my slasher and started to lunge at it from afar. After about six blows, I saw it started dying,” said Vijay.

He drove himself to a doctor in Chatsworth who asked him what type of snake it was. Unbeknown to him, a search on the internet revealed it was a puff-adder. On the advice of the doctor, Vijay drove back home to fetch the dead snake. “I went back home, placed the dead snake in a plastic bag and drove to Chatsmed Hospital, all the while praying to God that I don’t go into a stupor. When I got to hospital, some of the nurses nurses ran away in fear when they saw the dead snake. The doctor immediately administered antibiotics and ordered the anti-venom.”

A swollen ankle being the only outcome of the ordeal, Vijay was discharged on Monday, 26 May. “I’m relieved it’s over. I thank God I arrived at hospital in time,” he said. When he moved into the area 21-years-ago, Vijay recalls he had a few encounters with snakes, but he said they were harmless.

Residents are warned to be on the look-out for snakes as they tend to come out of hiding to bask in the sunshine. Puff adders, which release a cytotoxic or cell killing venom, are responsible for the highest fatal bites in Southern Africa. If you have been bitten by a snake, keep calm and do not try and suck the venom out, seek medical assistance.